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The effects of fast food in society
The effects of fast food in society
The effects of fast food in society
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The Truth about Food Local grown fresh produce is more beneficial to society than fast food or mass produced food. Buying locally will bring a higher quality of life for many generations to come by having a cleaner environment and enhancing the community. Fast food is killing society and causing a plaque of obesity which causes other health problems. Buying local fresh food is a much healthier choice for children and adults alike. Fresh food will also boost the economy through creating jobs and educating the population. Overall, local fresh produce is better for the community than fast or pre-packaged food. Fast food is harmful for the population. Farms are useful because it becomes an outlet for fresh healthy produce. Fast food and mass produced …show more content…
It keeps the jobs locally because farms need extra hands to cultivate the crops. It keeps put money into the community because the currency is continually circulating. Family owned businesses can stay open which also gives back to the community. In The Rich Get Richer, the Poor Go Hungry by Sharon Astyk and Aaron Newton, they say “When we grow our own food, or buy it directly from local farms, we take power away from multinationals.” (Astyk and Newton 518) They mean that big corporations will not be able to garner all of the currency if we stand by our farms. This will keep the many communities prosperous instead of in poverty. Farms also enhance the environment and make society as a whole more self-sufficient by learning how to make own food without having to depend on large factories and fast food chains. It can also help the environment by having less factories which leads to less pollution for future generations. In Food Fight by Michael Pollan he said, “The food system consumes more fossil fuel energy than we can count on in the future and emits more greenhouse gas then we can afford to emit.” (Pollan 514) He means that the environment will not last if people continue to use factories to make food which hurts communities in the …show more content…
Most people working at minimum wages cannot afford to buy fresh food and fall into the vicious cycle of eating out almost every meal. Fast food can be more convenient because it is fast and cheap, but fresh produce is the all-around better choice. Fresh produce are more nutritious than buying frozen or pre-packaged food. When food is frozen it lowers the nutritional value of the produce and usually there are unwanted preservatives added. Locally grown produce are healthier and helps families spend more time together at home. In The Fight over Food Deserts: Corporate America Smacks Its Way Down by Eric Holt-Giménez he says, “The solution to food security in America must come through a revitalized food ecomony-one that pays workers a living wage, that includes worker and minority owned businesses, and that keeps food dollars in local communities.” (Holt-Giménez 526) He means that people should have a wage that they can live off of and not have to buy food from corporations. The money should also be able to stay in the community instead of going to huge national francizes. In the long run families will save more money by eating at home then eating out every
In “Called Home”, the first chapter of the book Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year in Food Life, Barbara Kingsolver presents her concerns about America's lack of food knowledge, sustainable practices, and food culture. Kingsolver introduces her argument for the benefits of adopting a local food culture by using statistics, witty anecdotal evidence, and logic to appeal to a wide casual reading audience. Her friendly tone and trenchant criticism of America's current food practices combine to deliver a convincing argument that a food culture would improve conditions concerning health and sustainability. I agree with Kingsolver that knowing the origin of food is an important and healthy benefit of developing a true food culture, but it is impractical to maintain that everyone is able to buy more expensive food. Kingsolver presents a compelling argument for developing a food culture, however this lifestyle change may not be practical or even possible for a poverty-level citizen. The following essay will summarize and respond to Kingsolver’s argument to demonstrate how “Called Home” is a model for novice social scientists.
Reason 1: the locally grown produce’s nutritional value is overall better than unfamiliar produce shipped from foreign countries
More and more health-conscious individuals are scrutinizing the source of the food their family consumes. However, even the most conscientious consumer is not fully aware of the exhaustive efforts and struggle to get a juicy, ripe strawberry or that plump tomato in the middle of winter, even in Florida. These foods are harvested and picked mostly by seasonal and migrant farm workers. Migrant workers hail, in large part, from Mexico and the Caribbean, and their families often travel with them. Migrant farm workers must endure challenging conditions so that Americans can have the beautiful selection of berries, tomatoes, and other fresh foods often found at places like a farmer’s market or a traditional super market. Seasonal and migrant farm workers suffer a variety of health problems as a result of their constant exposure to stress, the elements, and chemicals such as pesticides. They are paid minimal wages and are expected to work long hours of strenuous labor for pennies on the dollar per piece or per hour. The migrant families are expected to live in substandard quarters and transported to various work sites in unsafe transportation. The fresh fruits and vegetables consumers purchase with little thought reach supermarkets at a cost that is not reflected in the retail price. This cost is ultimately absorbed by farm workers in Florida and other areas throughout the country, who are among the poorest of American workers.
Andrew F. Smith once said, “Eating at fast food outlets and other restaurants is simply a manifestation of the commodification of time coupled with the relatively low value many Americans have placed on the food they eat”. In the non-fiction book, “Fast Food Nation” by Eric Schlosser, the author had first-hand experiences on the aspects of fast food and conveyed that it has changed agriculture that we today did not have noticed. We eat fast food everyday and it has become an addiction that regards many non-beneficial factors to our health. Imagine the wealthy plains of grass and a farm that raises barn animals and made contributions to our daily consumptions. Have you ever wonder what the meatpacking companies and slaughterhouses had done to the meat that you eat everyday? Do you really believe that the magnificent aroma of your patties and hamburgers are actually from the burger? Wake up! The natural products that derive from farms are being tampered by the greed of America and their tactics are deceiving our perspectives on today’s agricultural industries. The growth of fast food has changed the face of farming and ranching, slaughterhouses and meatpacking, nutrition and health, and even food tastes gradually as time elapsed.
Although local food may be considered “healthier” it does not solve all of our food problems due to lack in quantity, economic depression, and time. People need to remember all of these factors when thinking of todays thriving country.
Research proves that low-income families will shop wherever the food prices are lower, and generally cannot afford to pay for healthful foods. In comparison to the residents of higher income communities, low-income households normally have diets that are higher in meat and processed foods and often have low intakes of fruits and vegetables. Research suggests that people with low socioeconomic status spend up to 37% more on food. This is because of smaller weekly food budgets in addition to poorly stocked stores. Those with lower income are more likely to spend money on inexpensive fats and sugars versus fresh fruits and vegetables that are more costly on a per calorie basis. Healthy foods like whole grain products are more expensive than high calorie junk foods.
The mouthwatering taste of locally grown food can be exceedingly mesmerizing due to the fact that it was grown a day before it was in the market. (Maiser) The demand for locally grown foods also allows the farmers to produce higher quality vegetables and fruit of quality and value. Others benefits of growing and eating food locally is the nutritional values that come with the food, the food does not have preservatives or growth hormones, it is grown and created to what it was supposed to be not genetically engineered to be delicious. Logically having more farms brings in more revenue for the farmers and the community. Even the taste of freshly grown food is better than the taste of factory-style grown meat and produce, is it better to eat meat that has been gr...
This might be true if you do buy in local farm you know that you food come from them but not everyone has the money to buy more fresh food. When I went to the Berkeley Farmer 's Market i was looking around and everything has so expensive even one apple cost like two dollar and I do understand that it more healthy but I rather go to like food maxx or grocery outlet and get a pack of apple for like three dollar, I can afford it because it too expensive and I want it to last more and be able to eat more than just one apple. I don’t think I’m the only one that goes grocery shopping at food maxx and grocery outlet because it cheaper and people are able to afford it, So when she says “This should enable you to eat more cheaply and will give you a measure of “quality control..” is not so
A major issue that is occurring in America is a phenomena known as “food deserts”, most are located in urban areas and it's difficult to buy affordable or good-quality fresh food. Whereas in the past, food deserts were thought to be solved with just placing a grocery store in the area, but with times it has become an issue that people are not picking the best nutritional option. This issue is not only making grocery store in food deserts are practically useless and not really eliminating the issue of food deserts because even when they are given a better nutritional option, and people are not taking it. In my perspective, it takes more than a grocery store to eliminate ‘food deserts’. It's more about demonstrating the good of picking the nutritional option and how it can help them and their families. For example, “Those who live in these areas are often subject to poor diets as a result and are at a greater risk of becoming obese or developing chronic diseases.”(Corapi, 2014).
What is happening to our economy is that so many people are going to these fast food restaurants because they are basically on just about every corner. So, for adults that makes it easy if they didn’t have anything planned for dinner because they can just pick something up from the local fast food restaurant on their way home from work. Also, it is very cheap. For example, a bundle at McDonald’s can feed up to four people at one time and it only costs about fifteen dollars! So, in the long run, it is just easier to go pick up some fast food rather than wasting your time cooking an actual meal. Lastly, even though fast food is very cheap and on every corner, it is not healthy at all. Studies have proven that a person that ate McDonald’s for his meals for a full month ended up having some serious health changes. In conclusion, even though it is very easy to access and very cheap, fast food has some serious health issues and be very harmful.
"We all grew up in communities with grandmothers who cooked two, three vegetables that you had to eat. There was no ifs, ands or buts about it. But that's because many of our grandparents, they had community gardens; there was the vegetable man that came around. There were many other resources that allowed them to have access. So it's not that people don't know or don't want to do the right thing; they just have to have access to the foods that they know will make their families healthier ("Michelle Obama in Chicago," 2011). People who have options of vegetables and fish products in grocery stores eat better and will have better outcome on health (Edberg, 2007).
... sell their product at a lower rate due to the transportation, storage, and marketing costs. Having the food sold through private markets, cuts out the middle man, and allows more money to end up back into the farms, which helps the farmer put money back into their business and other businesses. Money that goes back into local businesses then increases the local economy through a process called the multiplier effect. The multiplier effect is an economics term that is used to describe where a small investment of money is circulated back into the economy, it sets off a chain reaction that increases exponentially. For example, if a consumer gave the farmer $20 for his goods and the farmer spends three fifths of his income ($20 + (.06x$20)), $32 would be the amount of money available in the market from the initial $20 investment (Krugman, Paul R., and Robin Wells).
Without farmers, there would be no food for us to consume. Big business picked up on this right away and began to control the farmers profits and products. When farmers buy their land, they take out a loan in order to pay for their land and farm house and for the livestock, crops, and machinery that are involved in the farming process. Today, the loans are paid off through contracts with big business corporations. Since big business has such a hold over the farmers, they take advantage of this and capitalize on their crops, commodities, and profits.
Have you ever considered what is in the food you are feeding your children? Most foods that are bought at the neighborhood grocery stores are considered global foods which are packed with additives and chemicals making them far less nutritious than local produce from the community farmer‘s market. After much research, I have concluded that it is better to buy produce which is grown locally rather than produce which is sourced globally (from other countries). I think this is important because most people, like myself, buy global foods and do not realize how much better local foods are for the local economy, the global environment, and our personal nutrition. Nutrition is vital to the healthy of everyone especially children, so with the purchase of local fresh produce, it can ease the worry in parents of what children as well as ourselves are ingesting. Produce grown locally are healthier for toddlers because they contain more nutrition in the foods, meaning less additives and a better taste, helping them properly develop.
Fast food has changed the face of the world. Major chains like McDonalds span all over the world. Fast food chains are continuing to grow despite numerous facts of their unhealthiness. Fast food has been proven to be a dangerous food source, yet people continue to purchase it. The more people buy fast food the more it allows the big corporations to grow. People continue to eat fast food because there are no other convenient options.